Fairytale Gone Wrong
by ice shredder
Summary: This wasn't how the story was supposed to go. [Spoilers for V3 Eps 9-12] Ruby's POV. One-shot. Enjoy!


**Title: Fairytale Gone Wrong**

 **Fandom: RWBY**

 **Author: ice shredder**

 **Disclaimer: RoosterTeeth owns all.**

 **Warnings/Spoilers: Vol 3 Eps 9-12 and a little bit of Vol 4 spoilers is fair game. Based off a tumblr one-word prompt. Events from Penny's death to Pyrrha's and the resolve to go to Haven with JN_R told from Ruby's POV.**

 **As always, enjoy and review! :)**

 **Summary: This wasn't how the story was supposed to go.**

.

.

This wasn't how the story was supposed to go.

We were the good guys! We were supposed to win and save the day!

At least that's how it went in the fairy-tales Mom used to read to me when I was small.

We were supposed to save Beacon.

I was supposed to stop the match between Pyrrha and Penny. Why didn't I turn and run when I saw Mercury in the matinence hallway? Why did I choose to fight Torchwick and Neo alone? I didn't accomplish anything. All _that_ did was put me out of position. I couldn't save Penny or Pyrrha from dying.

We were supposed to beat the bad guys.

Resume the tournament at a later date and crown a winner.

But instead war and death came crashing over Beacon like a dark tidal wave.

What happened? Where did we go wrong?

These questions have haunted my every waking moment since that horrible night. Watching Penny get torn apart...Cinder shooting Pyrrha through the chest and spine...cremating her body with a flash of fire... _right in front of me..._ I-I can't get them out of my head. I feel like a failure. Both as a Huntress-in-training and a friend.

But most importantly, I failed as a team leader.

Weiss was taken back to Atlas by her father.

Blake ran away without explaining why.

And Yang...my big sister...lost her right arm. Her weapon. Her fierce pride. Her fiery, fighting spirit.

Gone.

Just like my innocence.

I can't close my eyes and pretend this never happened. Wish it all away, like it was a bad dream and someone will rub my back and tell me _everything's gonna be just fine, Ruby._

No.

It won't.

Nothing will **ever** be the same. I can't be that ignorant, naive little girl anymore.

I don't know if I'll ever see my sister and friends again. Here's why. I decided to travel to Haven with Jaune, Ren and Nora to track down Cinder and her crew. Get answers. Avenge Pyrrha. Find out what in the world's really going on.

And it's not like Yang and I parted on good terms. She gave me the cold shoulder after I said I loved her she shut down and wouldn't speak to me or Dad until I slipped out of the house.

It hurts. But there's nothing I can do for her now. I hope losing her arm doesn't hold her down forever. We need her strength. But...that'll be Yang's decision. No one else can make that choice for her.

Besides, I've got demons of my own to fight. I might've not lost a limb, but there's images burned into my head that I'll never forget as long as I live. They'll play on repeat. A constant never-ending loop...a bad scene in a horror movie.

Over and over and over and over-

Stop. Stop it Ruby. Tears won't bring the dead back. Or the thousands of innocent teams and civilians massacred by the Grimm and White Fang. All I can do is take Uncle Qrow's advice and move forward. Try to make sense of what happened. Maybe we'll save the world. Maybe we won't. I wish I could tell you how this story will end.

But I can't. I'm not even sure it'll have a happy ending. If Pyrrha's death was anything to go on, we're not off to a promising start.

But I hafta do _something._ Anything. Even if it's a suicidal trip to Haven, it's better than sitting around moping.

Well...here goes nothing I guess.

Wish me luck. With all the bad stuff going on I'm gonna need it. Oh, and don't forget to include JNR and the rest of my school friends and the teachers.

They need some love too.

So here we go, off to Haven on our own great adventure.

Let's hope most of us survive to tell our war stories.

I'm stretching that last bit. Most of us probably won't. But I'm hoping the ones who do survive the final battle will tell our story to future generations as a warning.

What was that other term Mom used to say about those kinds of stories...?

Legend?

Nope.

Fairy-tale?

Nope.

Myth?

Nope.

Oh yeah!

I remember now.

Cautionary tales.

That's what our story will be.

 **-end**


End file.
